In this article we will formulate a Houston Astros vs Kansas City Royals prediction for this MLB game on Thursday, August 29th at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. Let’s take a look at the prediction for game one in the series.
Houston Astros Betting Preview
The Houston Astros are 71-62 this year and they have split their last four games. Houston is coming off of a series loss against Philadelphia, where they lost two out of three games. Prior to that series, the Astros split four games with the Orioles, lost two out of three against the Red Sox, and won two out of three against the White Sox. Houston is 6-6 in their last 12 games and they are first in the AL West.
The Houston pitching staff has a 3.77 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and a .229 opponent batting average. The Astros offense has scored 607 runs with a .261 batting average and a .321 on base percentage. Jose Altuve is batting .299 with 18 home runs and 56 RBI’s for the Astros this season.
Kansas City Royals Betting Preview
The Kansas City Royals are 75-59 this season and they have split their last six games. Kansas City is coming off of a series win against Cleveland, where they won three out of four games. Prior to that series, the Royals lost two out of three against the Phillies, won two out of three against the Angels, and swept the Reds. Kansas City is 5-4 in their last nine games and they are second in the AL Central.
The Kansas City pitching staff has a 3.88 ERA, a 1.27 WHIP, and a .246 opponent batting average. The Royals offense has scored 654 runs with a .258 batting average and a .314 on base percentage. Bobby Witt is batting .346 with 28 home runs and 95 RBI’s for the Royals this season.
Starting Pitchers
The projected starting pitcher for Houston is Hunter Brown, who is 11-7 with a 3.72 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP over 140.1 innings pitched this year. Brown has allowed two earned runs or fewer in four straight starts. The projected starting pitcher for Kansas City is Brady Singer, who is 9-9 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP over 146.2 innings pitched this season. Singer has allowed at least four earned runs in three of his last four starts.
Why the Astros will beat the Royals
- The Astros have won each of their last eight Thursday games.
- The Royals have lost six of their last seven road games against AL West opponents.
- The Royals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last seven road games against AL West opponents.
- The Astros have covered the run line in each of their last eight Thursday games.
- The Royals have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last four night games against AL West opponents that held a winning record.
Total Runs Facts
- Six of the Astros’ last seven games as favorites against AL Central opponents have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- Five of the Royals’ last six games as underdogs against American League opponents have gone OVER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Royals’ last eight games against AL West opponents.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Astros’ last five night games.
Houston Astros Player Prop Facts
- Yordan Alvarez has recorded two or more total bases in each of the Astros’ last eight home games against the Royals.
- Yainer Diaz has recorded at least one hit in each of the Astros’ last 12 games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
- Yordan Alvarez has recorded at least one Single in each of his last seven appearances with the Astros as home favorites.
- Yainer Diaz has recorded an RBI in each of the Astros’ last four games as favorites against the Royals.
- Yainer Diaz has hit a home run in three of the Astros’ last four home games against AL opponents.
- Yainer Diaz has scored at least one run in each of the Astros’ last seven night games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
Kansas City Royals Player Prop Facts
- Brady Singer has recorded five or more strikeouts in each of his last 10 appearances in night games against teams that held a winning record.
- Salvador Perez has hit a home run in three of his last four appearances at Minute Maid Park against AL West opponents that held a winning record.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has scored at least one run in eight of the Royals’ last nine night games against AL West opponents that held a winning record.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded at least one hit in each of the Royals’ last 17 night games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
- Hunter Renfroe has recorded at least one Single in seven of his last eight appearances with the Royals as road underdogs.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded at least one total base in each of the Royals’ last 17 night games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
- MJ Melendez has recorded at least one RBI in five of his six previous road appearances against the Astros.
- MJ Melendez has recorded at least one Double in three of the Royals’ last four road games against AL West opponents.
Houston Astros vs Kansas City Royals Prediction
Houston comes into this matchup after avoiding the sweep in their last series, and they will look to find some momentum with a win here. The Astros are 35-29 at home this year, while the Royals are 34-31 on the road. Kansas City blew a chance to sweep the Guardians by giving up a late lead on Wednesday, but they are just one game behind Cleveland in the AL Central. Houston is starting Hunter Brown, who has been very good in his last four starts. KC is going with Brady Singer, who has been decent this season, but hasn’t been his best recently. I think Houston is going to jump on Singer here and I am taking them to win by at least two runs.